Kim Kerker, Author at Pro Bono Institute

Breaking the Cycle: The Power of Pro Bono in Addressing Racial Wealth Disparities Through Heirs’ Property

July 23, 2024

By Riley Kelly, PBI Intern Many families in the United States face heirs’ property issues, where land is passed down without a formal will, leading to unclear ownership and legal challenges. Heirs’ property challenges disproportionately affect communities of color, especially Black families in the South, limiting their ability to build wealth through homeownership. Pro bono attorneys can play an essential role working with legal services organizations to help these families navigate legal complexities, secure their property rights, and contribute to closing the racial wealth gap by preserving generational assets. What is heirs’ property? Heirs’ property refers to land that has

Driving Impact and Engagement: The Business Case for Corporate Volunteerism

July 15, 2024

By Daniela Ramirez-Ledesma, PBI Intern Offering a legal pro bono or corporate volunteerism program not only increases access to justice in our communities, it’s also a smart business decision. The business case for legal pro bono and corporate volunteerism more broadly isn’t new, and recent research continues to show that these programs increase employee engagement, provide an advantage in employee recruitment and retention, and help employees develop leadership potential and thrive. Corporate Pro Bono (CPBO), the global in-house project of Pro Bono Institute, has highlighted the business case for in-house pro bono for over a decade. CPBO’s Guide on The

Sheltering Justice: The Crucial Role of Pro Bono Lawyers After Grants Pass v. Johnson

June 28, 2024

By Hailey Kearsley, PBI Intern and PBI Staff The U.S. Supreme Court issued its highly-anticipated decision in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson today – holding that a city’s efforts to prohibit unhoused individuals from sleeping outside when there’s nowhere else for them to sleep does not violate the Eighth Amendment’s protection against cruel and unusual punishment. I sat in front of the Supreme Court at 1:00 a.m. on a cold night in April so that I could attend oral argument in the case. With the temperature falling to 40 degrees, many came prepared, camping outside with tents and sleeping

The Force Multiplier Effect: Combining Partnership, Mentorship, Technology and More to Serve Nonprofits and Impact Community

May 29, 2024

PBI Signatory Showcase Interview with Koch Capabilities, LLC and Barnes & Thornburg LLP In February 2020, weeks before the pandemic began to ripple across the U.S., Koch Industries welcomed representatives from our panel of preferred law firms to Wichita. Koch General Counsel Ray Geoffroy felt strongly that Koch had a tremendous opportunity to accomplish so much good for society by leveraging our combined capabilities (internal lawyers and external panel firm lawyers) on a larger scale. He challenged the law firms to partner with our Pro Bono Initiative and become a “force multiplier” to Koch’s efforts. Further, he set the expectation

The Power of Law Firms and Law Schools Working Together on Pro Bono

May 28, 2024

by Kelsey Hunt, PBI Intern Strong and growing interest in pro bono at law schools suggests that there has never been a better time for collaboration between law firms and law schools. For example, 82 students at the University of Virginia School of Law’s 2023 graduating class completed the pro bono hours challenge of at least 75 hours of service. This law student interest in pro bono is more than just a flash in the pan; interest has been peaking over several years now. The University of Chicago Law School’s class of 2022 broke the school’s record by collectively recording

Balancing the Scales: State Efforts for Local Legal Aid Funding

May 22, 2024

The Legal Services Corporation Act of 1974 changed the access to justice landscape by funding the first independent, national nonprofit – the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) – to financially support legal aid organizations that assist with civil legal matters. The Act underscored that “there is a need to provide high quality legal assistance to those who would be otherwise unable to afford adequate legal counsel.” Unmet civil legal need continues to grow, however, and without necessary funding, legal services organizations and pro bono lawyers cannot adequately provide services to low-income individuals. Both nationally and across the states, government officials, legal

Legal Department Leaders Unite to Support Funding for Civil Justice

May 17, 2024

For the eighth year running, legal department leaders have once again rallied to support the Legal Services Corporation (LSC), the largest funder of civil legal aid in the United States. Pro Bono Institute (PBI) and its global in-house project, Corporate Pro Bono (CPBO), along with the National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA), put out a call to action to General Counsel and Chief Legal Officers, inviting them to sign a letter of support for increasing LSC’s Fiscal Year 2025 funding. The GCs and CLOs from 147 corporations signed the letter, calling on Congress to strengthen its investment in equal justice by increasing funding

Mandatory Pro Bono Continues to Face Challenges

April 30, 2024

In an effort to address unmet legal needs, some jurisdictions have tried their hand at mandatory pro bono service and reporting, but these systems continue to face challenges. Whether it is New Jersey’s longstanding requirement that lawyers represent indigent defendants or a new proposal in California that would ask lawyers to tell the state bar the number of pro bono service hours they complete each year, the debate among lawyers, state bar associations, and others continues. Background: Pro bono service has historically been encouraged, but not mandated. First adopted in 1983, the American Bar Association’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct

Pledging to Do More In-House Pro Bono

April 30, 2024

Challenge, accepted! Pledge, taken! Target, aimed! Legal department leaders around the globe have more opportunities than ever before to publicly commit to engaging their legal teams in pro bono. In April 2024, the UK In House Pro Bono Pledge joined the global Corporate Pro Bono Challenge® initiative and the Australian National Pro Bono Target as a way for GCs and CLOs to demonstrate their commitment to pro bono. These initiatives share a common purpose of motivating in-house pro bono participation. The Corporate Pro Bono (CPBO) project of Pro Bono Institute (PBI) launched the Corporate Pro Bono Challenge initiative, in 2006

When Virtual Still Works: Helping the Housing Crisis in More Rural Areas

March 27, 2024

Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP Interview Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP has partnered with Legal Services of the Hudson Valley to staff a helpline for tenants facing eviction or related housing crises. Through the helpline, tenants can receive advice about their legal rights and assistance with completing pro se forms, such as answers and motions, to file in their cases. In 2023, over 500 clients were provided assistance through the helpline. We spoke with Laura Sinrod, Special Counsel and Resident Pro Bono Counsel in the New York office. As pro bono counsel, Laura is responsible for

Author: Kim Kerker